The case was “Neate-v-Heselden”.  The dispute concerned the estate of Mr Ray Watts who died aged 90 in 2021.  Mr Watts was a retired bank clerk with a love of stamp collecting; so much so that he built up a collection said to be valued at £200,000.

He made a Will in 2007 which left his estate to his three children and three stepchildren.

In 2019, during a stay in hospital, he made a new Will which left £15,000 to each of his children and to Mrs Neate, his stepdaughter.  The remainder of his estate was left to Mrs Pope, his cleaner since 2011 and latterly his close friend.  He also sold his valuable stamp collection to Mrs Pope for £1.  Then a year later, having been annoyed by his stepdaughter’s behaviour in changing the locks to his house whilst he was in hospital, amongst other things, he amended his wishes again. He signed a document known as a codicil saying that his stepdaughter would only receive £1 from his estate.

Knowledge and approval of the Will

On realising what had happened after his death, the stepdaughter challenged the Will on the basis that her stepfather did not have the appropriate knowledge of what he was signing and could not give approval.  She argued that the making of the new Will was driven by Mrs Pope, that the medical records showed a “slowness in his thinking” and also that there was no good reason for her stepfather to exclude her from the estate.

Mrs Pope said that the Will represented  Mr Watts’s wishes freely given, and that he had been annoyed by the stepdaughter changing the locks to the house.

The Judge determined there was very little if any evidence presented by the stepdaughter to suggest the Will was invalid and her claim failed. Accordingly, Mrs Pope received what was left in Mr Watts’ estate: £200,000 (on top of the stamp collection she had already been given).

Exciting the suspicion of the Court

It is a high bar to find a Professionally drawn Will is invalid.  The stepdaughter had to show in the first instance that there were circumstances which should ‘excite the suspicion’ of the court that Mr Watts did not know what the effect of his Will and codicil would be. In this case, the stepdaughter presented very little evidence to show that Mr Watts did not know what he was signing.  In contrast, the Judge found that the Will file of the Solicitor who prepared the Will contained a very clear account of Mr Watts’ reasoning as to why the stepdaughter would get nothing.  Mr Watts had even made a statement.

Paying a heavy Penalty

The stepdaughter was criticised heavily by the Judge for not presenting any cogent evidence to the Court as to why Mr Watts’ Will was invalid.  She was penalised and ordered not just to pay the costs of Mrs Pope and the other parties, but to pay them at a higher rate than a losing party normally may expect to.  She was ordered to pay £100,000, in addition to paying all costs due to her own legal team.

Take Early Advice in a Will validity Dispute

Challenging a Will is not straight forward.  There are inherent risks and the whole process can be ruinously expensive.  That said, there are cases where challenges are appropriate, and that is why it is so important that legal advice  is taken early, and the right investigations are carried out. Ridley & Hall’s Will Disputes solicitors can help you to determine the appropriate course of action at an early stage, whether bringing or defending a claim.

Gareth Jones – Solicitor